


Calm Before The Storm

by Raynidreams



Category: Battlestar Galactica (2003)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-01-28
Updated: 2012-01-28
Packaged: 2017-10-30 06:36:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,268
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/328845
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Raynidreams/pseuds/Raynidreams
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>AU, pre series.  Kara is a ranger, Lee a Hiker.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Calm Before The Storm

 

Lee adjusted the shouldering of his pack, tilting his neck to one side and then the other to try and release some of the tension along the muscle. He longed to feel something go pop, an audio indication of the strain easing, but disappointingly, nothing did, and head back in place, his neck still ached. He sighed but with a smile. For ache aside, it was worth it. This whole gruelling experience was worth it. Five days so far, followed by their counter parts of companionably and jovial nights together in the wilds with nothing but what they carried and the moment to enjoy.

His stomach rumbled and he slowed his pace, grinning for the reminder to eat. He cast an eye around looking for a patch off the deer trail to rest, and in spotting a little inlay, headed for it without yelling back.

The bracken broke around his shins with satisfying little snaps as his feet sank into the dampness of the leaf covered forest floor; releasing the pungent smells of soil and also of fresh broken green things. The scents sharp and clean within his nose.

In sinking down to rest, he gloried in the feel of being free to eat whenever hunger hit; free to sit in the mud; and most importantly, the feeling of just feeling  _free_. They awoke whenever the sun rose and fell asleep whenever it went down. This, or when they were simply too exhausted to go on.  _Footstep after footstep for miles._

This had been one of the best ideas that Zak had ever had, Lee concluded. And in thinking of his younger, but much bigger brother, Zak came up the trail with his usual languid stride and an easy grin.

"Good, I'm starved. Was kinda hoping you'd stop before now," he said as he sat down beside Lee.

"You're not starved, you're hungry. Starving is another thing altogether," Lee replied. "And, you could've said before now, ass."

"What, and upset the foot coverage of my glorious leader? Nah, life's too short to hear you bitch about us not getting to the coast by nightfall."

"There's no rush, you know that. We finish where we drop."

Zak guffawed around his sandwich. "Really? Where we drop? Lee, you are so misguided in your notions about your bohemian self."

Lee threw a beer at him.

"Hey! Don't get defensive. I just find it hilarious that you think we're living out our 'wildness,' and yet each evening we reach those little ringed areas on your map. Methinks, Leland, you be lying to yourself," he chuckled, affecting an Aerilon accent.

Lee glared at him thinking that another beer bottle was neither big or hard enough to sufficiently complete the job. His brother caught the look and grinned. The grin that always made Lee feel better. Made Lee realise that no matter what other shit happened in his life, his little brother would be there to get his back.

They ate while chatting about the drop gorge they'd passed called Demons Jump earlier that morning. Then, the sight of the mist and smell of the loam from the high peak clearing they'd also passed. And finally, about them entering into the last thick stretch of forest before they made it to the coast.

The two men were just packing up their provisions when the sound of a harsh engine ripped through the quiet of leaves falling and the birdsong.

"What the frak?" Lee cursed, instantly thinking that anyone who would spoil this environment with dirt bike deserved a good old fashioned smack.

Sixty seconds later though, and he felt guilty. The biker rode up, and he identified them as being a ranger by the forest insignia on the helmet and furthermore, as an emergency medic by the snake symbol of healing.  _Mountain emergency services_ , he realised.

His guilt lasted for the amount of time it took the woman (from the curving shape under the riding gear), to dismount off her bike. Because when she did and she took off her helmet, his next reaction was one of lower brain function, and then the one after anger when she opened her mouth to start yelling.

"What _the hell_  are you two doing up here?" she demanded. Fire and ire lighting up eyes the same colour as the leaves that surrounded her face he noticed; catching them snapping as she marched over with all the bluster of a Caprica City cop – or one off the network shows anyhow.

"Err, walking?" Zak answered for them. His manner mild, and a little boyishly defensive.

It stopped the woman in her attack. Her eyes narrowing in on their features; adjusting as they became used to the light without her tinted helmet visor.

"Walking?" It wasn't said nicely. It had more the tone of mother who'd just found her child eating worms. "Walking? Gods, why are men so stupid?" It didn't seem like it needed an answer. "I take it you've been out for a week or more?"

"Err, yeah?"

"With no satellite com?"

"We..."

The woman snorted and bit her lip. "Nugget hikers… gods, one of these days…"

"Look Ranger, I'm not sure what…"

She held up a hand. "Don't you dare, 'Look Ranger' me. I've just had to come out here to find and save the sorry asses of some strays, ones  _who_  at least had the sense to take a com…"

"Like that's our fault!"

"Shut up! And so what do I find when nearing their presumed location? Notice two other idiots still out here and in no hurry to reach one of the safety shelters!"

"What is your problem, Ranger," Lee's eyes swept her breast pocket tag, "Thrace?"

"My problem is that now I not only have to find three members of a pyramid team in need, I've also got to get you two off this section of the mountain side before the hurricane hits the coast in just under five hour's time!"

Lee's face which was leaning aggressively into hers, melted. "Oh." Hurricane,  _ah_. He hadn't known about that.

"Err, Ranger?" Lee had almost forgotten his brother was still there in the face of such fury before him.

"What?" she snapped, her eyes locked onto Lee's.

"We saw a large group of people yesterday evening. Up by the ridge, seemed like they were settled there through our goggles when we looked. Had goal stands." Zak always played nice around furious women, but he sounded a little shaky here and the unusual timidity put Lee's protective back up against the woman anew.

"The three I'm after went for solo trek and one fell down a frakkin' incline. I was heading to where I think they are from the description when I caught you two relaxing here like it's the frakkin' park! Thankfully, for you idiots I can show you a quick route to a shelter cabin. You should be safe there until this passes over." The woman reeled all this off without breaking eye contact with Lee, and when done, twisted in the direction of her bike like a force of nature herself, taking sure footsteps down the slope to where it rested. There to reach for a trail map protected in a sheer coating.

"Hey, hey," Lee called, jogging down after her. "Listen, we're not idiots. We're field trained."

"Military? Really? And yet here you are outta com range. Nice one boys." At her tone, something clicked within Lee. He knew her face and he knew her manner. He'd seen her picture in the graveyard of former failed flight school stars and her turn of phrase was that of military brat. He also knew the name, now his memory had caught up with the whirlwind that she'd presented by storming in here.

"Kara Thrace? Former Lt. Kara Thrace?" The woman stilled and turned her eyes up to him.

"What's it to you, asshole?"

"Nice," he muttered nodding. "I'm Lee Adama and this is my brother Zak… we're…"

The woman sighed, then cut him off. "The infamous son of Commander Adama… well I never. It's always nice when one's daddy gives you a leg up the ladder." She snapped the map open and pointed to something without giving him chance to draw in another breath let alone retort. "This here, it's three miles that way down hill. It's set into the bedrock so nothing but a earthquake will pull it down. Inside you'll find food and water. Go now, I'll find these dicking players, get the SAR to them, and then come down to you two fellas later."

Lee gritted his jaw against the insult to himself and Zak.

"Had we known, we would have acted appropriately. I'm not green, Kara." He cut back - inside cursing himself for keep having to refer to her as something, and now that his head knew the name it was like his lips wanted to test it out.

She greeted his comment with a dark stare.

"Not green? On a mountain, near a coastal region known for it's freak weather patterns at this time of year? Where only last year a party of ten died from exposure in the winter and thirty or so during the last hurricane because of no means of communication?"

Lee admitted to himself it was dumb to not check in for four days. Once the notion of a trip had been raised, he'd just wanted for Zach and him to be free from both of their parents for two weeks. Away from everyone and every duty. To lark about, drink beer and make campfires. His mind occupied with his own stupidity, it took him a moment to see the stiffness to her face, his mind flicking back over to what she'd said about the losses of the other hikers.  _It clicked_. He knew how protective people grew of the places they lived and worked. How responsible those in charge felt in wanting to protect those under their care. He understood command: how crushing it was when one failed those they were due to protect. This insight told him that she felt responsible for each and every one of those deaths.

He backed off, sighed and scratched his jaw. "I'm not that dumb, in fact. I do have a com. We were planning to turn it on every few days. I guess we forgot yesterday."

Her head moved a little in a non-committal gesture, then she drew her teeth over her lip calming down. She sighed and let it drop. Yelling wasn't getting this done any faster. "Fine. Dressing you down is wasting time anyway." She pinpointed an icon on the map. "This here's the place. The route is direct. Take it while I'll get these others. Then I'll come to you and we'll wait out this storm together."

"Why can't we come with you?" Zak asked gently from where he stood a distance away. His hands wrapped around the straps of his camper pack, the padded orange straps thick against the white of his t-shirt.

The woman nodded while talking, "The mountain SAR's aren't as big as raptors. They can only manage a  _stretch'_ , the crew and three others. It's too late to call for another now."

Lee looked up at the sky through the branches of the trees. It still looked blue, wispy and beautiful. The woman, this Kara, caught the direction of his gaze. With a humourless grin she grabbed his jaw and he stilled. (The connection felt like basking at the edge of a  smouldering  fire, the energy stroking down his spine.) Then she turned his face in the opposite direction. Grey streaks were working into the blue like the tentacles of an octopus reaching for its prey.

"Ah," he muttered. It coaxed a twisted bark of laughter out of Zak and a grudging smile out of Kara.

"Look," she said placating, a smile in her voice. "Nice to met you, I'm Ranger Thrace - or formally Starbuck if you want fleet. I'm also the most massive'est bitch without a drink in my hand. So, let's stop wasting time. I go, come back, and in the shelter there's some cards and some cheap liquor with our names on them. You up for that, my newly dear Adama boys?"

Zak nodded but Lee raised a hand. "Zak should go down, but I can be of help. I do actually know these trails and I'm also a qualified field medic."

"I don't need any help," she started only for Lee to press on with his point, interrupting her.

"It sounds to me like you don't wish to lose anymore on this mountain? Well, if so, I can be of help, especially if it's really serious when we get there."

"I need to get you to safety. Both of you!"

Zak stepped forward then. "Err, sorry to interrupt this jock contest, but it seems to me that the safest place for both of us, would actually be with you?"

"You can't both get on the back of my bike," Kara countered with a grin.

Zak, echoed his brother. "Ah."  
  
Lee saw Zak give her his most winning puppy dog smile; the one that usually got anyone to do what he wanted.  He wondered if Kara would fall victim to it too.  She did.

She rubbed her nose, the cursed. "Alright. Again with the bitch. I was going to have to ditch the bike anyway." She shot Zak a look that was unapologetic but also grudgingly amused. "Trail's too bad. I'll chain it instead." She proceeded to cast the bike a regretful look.

"Let's hope it survives," Zak muttered.

Kara met Lee's look over Zak's innocent words. It clearly said:  _let's hope we do._

* * *

The world got darker and darker the more they walked, the wind beginning to whip up about them quickly. Leaves and other twigs and plant debris getting into their eyes, scratching at their faces.

"I hope we find them soon," Lee yelled, raising his voice to be heard over the rapid stirring of the wind.

Kara didn't reply; only shot him a masked look.

* * *

It took another half an hour to locate the trio of pyramid jocks. The biggest, a man, Anders was lying in a bad way at the base of an incline. By his side, Barolay, the player that Zak'd had the hots for since Vidscreen playoffs last summer was cradling the injured Anders's head. At the top, another woman was waiting dressed in a dripping cowl.

"Thank the Lords…" she exclaimed. Running to meet them with a garbled version of the story. "Frak, are we idiots…" she started off, knowing it to be true. "We'd bunked off yesterday morning to frak about in the woods and got lost. Thankfully, Sam had his shortwave com, or rather not," she reeled off. "Tried to find a higher ridge to make a call, got through to the team to say where we were then he fell! Dumbass. We got another call through afterwards to report how he's hurt real bad. Head and knee's busted," she didn't run out of words or breathe it seemed, and carried on as Kara and the Adamas followed her down the muddy incline. "His form's gonna be shot for this year, if we don't get dead anyway... Jean's also got a busted ankle - lump that T is, dragged her down with him." She glanced at Kara. "Ranger, this is such an asshole of a place to get stuck.  Why the hell do you come up here just for fun?"

Kara glanced at her once and grinned. "I get paid.  It's my job to save assholes like you when things go wrong." Lee could tell that she liked her. She also liked the other woman near the bottom too when she yelled up to them, "T's pretty bad. Frakker's got a hard head but soft heart, so any chance we can get him and me outta here anytime soon?"

Kara got to the bottom, sweat leaving trails in the dirt wind blown into her face.

"Okay, let me have a look'atcha," she said clearly, hunkering down by his side. Up to Lee, she tossed the satellite com. "Give 'em the co-ordinates now we know this is the right place. They've been keeping to behind the mountain to save their engines against the wind should this have proved to be a false location."

Lee nodded and did as ordered, then afterwards, followed her down to the bottom to help assist with the injured man. Zak stayed at the top, eyes alert for the impending bird. Coming close, Lee admired the confident way that Kara got the man to reply to her prompts. The way she checked his wounds and kept calm despite the wind now howling in their ears like Diana on the hunt.

Kara glanced up at him as he knelt and circled his hand around, indicating that the SAR was coming. She nodded and got back to opening up the splint packaging to secure the injured man's leg. Lee, following his training correctly, held Anders's leg in place while he writhed in pain - just able to lock down on the sickness he felt as he looked at the gash to the man's shin: only slightly less squeamish to see that the bone was not sticking out of it. Done, they both eased back as the player panted, grey faced.

"Okay, Sam! Now the rescue is going to be here soon to take you and your team mates to a nice hospital filled with hot male and female nurses who are going to take all your pain away," Kara told the C-Buck loudly.

The man grimaced and nodded, then gave her a stained smile. "Come visit me and it'll be perfect," he muttered through white lips.

To his side, the redheaded woman snorted. "If he can flirt, then he'll live."

Kara just had time to nod in reply to this when the tree at the top gave way and crashed down. Falling with an almighty crack and a drawn out ripping and popping moan. Lee cried out the first warning and others near him froze. It missed them, but in the space where Zak and Sue-Shawn had stood, there was nothing.

"Zak!" Lee jumped up, coughing at the dirt and dislodged bark and other things whirling in the air, then darted up the hill, hurtling over the chaos of leaves and up turned earth. Choking down on the fact that his stomach was in his chest and his heart in his mouth. At the top, he clawed at branches, burrowing through foliage urgently. "Zak! Zak!" he called  repeatedly .  Snapping and shifting branches aside, ploughing through to finally hear a distinct moan. Moaning was good. Moaning meant  _alive_ . "Zak, buddy, can you hear me?"

Lee waited, but nothing came back this time so he began to once more rip into the vegetation, and after a few breaths, to realise that other hands were gripping him from behind. "Easy, easy there, Lee? Lee?" Someone yelled; the strident voice in his ear getting him to focus over his panic. The red mist of fear opened up a little and he saw through. It was Kara at his shoulder, her firm body pressed into his back from padded coat covered breasts down to her lean thighs.

In his ear, she yelled for him to calm, but his mind still screamed:  _it's Zak!_

"Lee." Her breath was so soft in comparison to the gale barreling into them from all sides. "Lee, you need to calm down and to work at this carefully. You could hurt him from tearing in like this, and you know it. I can tell that you do."

Lee wondered how she could, but then he recalled the connection he'd felt at her touch and the knowing with which he'd watched her deal so calmly with the others. He recognized it from his own training and natural temperament. So he closed his eyes, counted until prepared, then nodded. Her strong arms let him go and she walked around to his side.

"Help me lift the trunk?" he asked, sounding calm on the surface. Beside him, he felt Kara nod.

Another faint moan came from beneath. Joined soon by a lighter female one.

* * *

Two hours later and the storm hit fully just as Lee and Kara made it back to the shelter she'd designated on the map. Both gasping as they ran inside, pushed by the force of the wind pressing them in the direction it wanted them to go along with leaves and forest fragments. Kara slammed the storm shelter door shut behind them, and then piled extra bars into the slots to secure it. Inside, everything was darkness, and for a few moments all either of them could do was pant and assess their own physical person for damage. Lee had a massive bruise to his head from a branch slamming into him. Kara, a cut to her eyebrow from being whip lashed by another passing something or other.  _Nature's own missiles._  In fact, both of them were suffering from numerous cuts and bruises; a full on battering to every limb of their bodies. They were also soaked and freezing.

"It's like a kraken's been released out there… Gods! Do you think they made it back okay?" Lee asked, his voice winded.

Kara considered the blackness in where she knew his shape stood. Hearing the overwhelming concern in his voice.  _Here is a good person_ , she thought.  _A good man. S_ _tron_ _g. And not in need of using his daddy's name,_ which was her default assumption on anyone with a military family name in the career. But with Lee, it couldn't be further from the truth. She'd witnessed how he'd dealt with himself over his brother's injury. How he'd help deal with the Pyramid players. How even with the storm getting so fierce around them, there'd been no hesitation in him about stepping back and letting the rescue bird leave him behind with just her as a guide to some promised and as of yet, unseen safety point.

From out of her pocket, she pulled a glow stick and snapped it. It illuminated their faces spectrally.

"Your brother's going to be fine, Lee. He looked okay, as did they all aside from cuts, bruises and breaks. And if you need more of a reassurance, Helo's the best casualty medic in our core. Athena, the best pilot. Together, they'll get your brother out and all the others out with them. They got him on the rescue bird safe and nothing is going to stop them from getting him to the hospital safe too."

"I shouldn't have… it's my job to look out for him. I was in charge of this."

"Hey, what's done is done. And, you had to come with me. You were the only one still able to walk." Her face clouded over with concern at his still fraught look. "Listen to me," she said, coming closer. "He was talking okay, and that's all you should think about."

_Should_ , Lee thought as he stared at her.  _Should_  be thinking about that, but instead he was thinking about something else in response to how the warm feeling of simply looking at her set against his shock, easing it into something else.  
  
Had it only been five hours since this morning when he'd sat eating with his brother? Five hours since she'd pulled up. So little time and in which so much had changed. And now here he was, alone with this woman. Upset, with his body rocketing from the pressure of finding his brother covered in blood to the tension of this situation. He stopped thinking then, and did the only thing that wasn't something painful and kissed her. It came out of nowhere, the sudden desire to taste her. And at the touch, the heat came back, voltage snapping from where their lips met. Building on the awareness of where his pout met hers softly - hers opening in surprise, to his hands on her face; then her palms flattening out to glide up and around his shoulders. He felt the vibrations deep in the core of his chest, then them stiffening his groin.

He wrenched away. "Gods! I am so, so sorry!" he whispered ashamed, damning himself. Flogging his mind with what she must be thinking. His assumptions, however, proved to be wrong, for Kara merely breathed out a humming puff, then pulled him back firmly.

"Don't be," she eventually replied, her chuckle brazen; the words against his mouth. "I don't know how you feel. But if it's anything like me, this is the best I've felt all day, Apollo."

He inched back a little, stunned. "You know my call sign?"

She grinned.

His eyes narrowed in on her face. "So, how did you get booted out the service, then?"

"It's a long story, Adama."

"It's gonna be a long night."

"If I die, my sins are between me and the gods. Besides, I've a better idea of how to pass the time now." The glow stick on the floor, he felt her hands reach for his buckle.

Lee stilled.

"You're brother really is going to be okay, so relax."

"But…"

"There's nothing you can do from here, really - so be here, with me."

And Lee was, thinking that for all of how this trip had taken a down turn, there could be an upside. Then her mouth touched him, hot and wet, and he stopped thinking altogether. He stopped planning, and followed her pull to the floor.


End file.
